Steamboat locals swing into action

Golfer Jim Kelley tees off at the 12th annual Rally for the Cure Golf Tournament at Rollingstone Ranch.

Photo by John F. Russell

Golfer Bill Sauter chips onto the green at the 12th annual Rally for the Cure Golf Tournament at Rollingstone Ranch.

Video

Rally for the Cure

Footage from this year's Rally for the Cure Golf Tournament to help fight and raise awareness about breast cancer.

Steamboat Springs  Bonnie Madderom gave up golf more than 25 years ago and has no plans to return to the game any time soon.

“I got beat by my mom, who was 70 at the time, and I decided that golf just wasn’t my game,” Madderom said Tuesday from the patio of the Rollingstone Ranch Golf Club in Steamboat Springs. “I guess I would rather spend my time riding my mountain bike.”

But her lack of appreciation for the game wasn’t about to stop Madderom from showing up at the course bright and early Tuesday to volunteer for this year’s Rally for the Cure Golf Tournament.

She had no intentions of playing in the tournament, but her friendship with organizer Linda Danter and her own battle with breast cancer were more than enough for her to get behind the golfing event, which raises money for the Yampa Valley Breast Cancer Awareness Project and Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation.

Danter said Madderom, and several other local women who were confronted with breast cancer a few years back, inspired her to start the Rally for the Cure in Steamboat Springs.

“It’s great to have volunteers like her helping with this tournament,” Danter said. “They want to see it succeed because they understand how important the cause is.”

Madderom is excited that most of the money goes to the Yampa Valley Breast Cancer Awareness Project. That organization helps women in Routt and Moffat counties with the expenses of dealing with breast cancer. The money is used to provide support, pay for mammograms and provide other financial assistance for the detection and treatment of breast cancer.

“It’s a wonderful cause, and when it’s all over, you feel good knowing that you’ve helped with something that provided financial and emotional support to others in your community,” Madderom said.

She has survived two bouts with breast cancer.

Madderom was able to beat the disease, and she said her own experence is one of the main reasons she shows up each year to help with the tournament.

“I’m so glad that the Yampa Valley Breast Cancer Awareness Project is there,” Madderom said. “It doesn’t make dealing with breast cancer any easier, but it’s more comforting to know that it’s there and helps women deal with breast cancer.”

Her fear today is that because of the economy, and shrinking health benefits at businesses, women have stopped taking preventative measures or will be unable to get the care they need.

“Fundraising is very important,” Madderom said. “This organization helps women who don’t have insurance or who face huge expenses because their insurance doesn’t cover the costs that come with breast cancer.”

It’s a fear that event organizer Linda Danter also shares, but she has been comforted by the support she has gotten.

She was thrilled that after 12 years, Rally for the Cure still is finding a huge amount of support in the community. This year, 204 golfers showed up to play in the tournament’s two sessions, and there were 95 hole sponsors, 192 local merchants who provided items for the drawings and 128 that stepped up with silent auction items.

Danter understands that the money raised is just a drop in the bucket when it comes to what is needed to find a cure, but she is happy that the event brings money into the community that benefits local women in a time of need.